Man who opposed closure of road for Gen. Wei’s convoy released on bail

A man who obstructed the police who were directing traffic to facilitate the movement of a convoy of vehicles carrying the Chinese military delegation was released on bail yesterday. Colombo additional magistrate, Rajindra Rajasuriya released him on a surety of Rs. 50, 000.

Noting that the suspect had returned from Australia after a decade, the magistrate said that he had to respect the actions taken by police when a foreign dignatary arrives in Sri Lanka. This is not Australia, the magistrate said and warned him to respect Sri Lankan laws.

Earlier, DIG (Legal) Attorney-at-Law Ajith Rohana said that the Borella police arrested the 31-year-old person who had returned recently after a ten-year stay in Australia, in the wake of social media footage of the scene near the Borella junction. DIG Rohana said that the police officers deployed there also observed him urging other motorists to ignore the closure of the road.

DIG Rohana emphasized that restrictions on movement of vehicles were part of overall security measures adopted in view of Chinese Defence Minister Wei Fenghe’s visit. The public couldn’t oppose such measures under any circumstances, the Police Spokesman said. The suspect was produced in court yesterday (SF)